A Romanian shepherd, carrying his traditional stick and a wrinkled banner, shouts while running towards the main entrance gate of the Romania’s Parliament Palace, during a protest in Bucharest, Romania, on Tuesday. Up to one thousand farmers from all over the country gathered to protest against the government’s shepherd regulating policies

Miners push the last coal loaded mining carriage at the end of their last shift at the coal mine in the Romanian city of Petrila. Petrila opened in 1859 and is the oldest coal mine in Romania and deepest mine in Europe.

Migrants stand in a queue near the police station in the southern Serbian town of Presevo, near the border with Macedonia, on Thursday. Illegal immigrants cross Serbia on their way to other European countries as it has land access to three members of the 28-nation bloc, Romania, Hungary and Croatia

A child from from Dofteana, northern Romania wearing a bear fur, lies on an office building’s steps while taking a break from performing a holiday season ritual in Bucharest, Romania. In pre-Christian rural traditions, dancers wearing colored costumes or animal furs, tour house to house in villages singing and dancing to ward off evil. In recent years following the economic downturn in Romania, a European Union member since 2007, the tradition has moved to Romania’s cities where dancers travel to perform the ritual for money during the Christmas and New Year’s period.

Romanian Honor Guard soldiers pay respects to the victims of the 1989 revolution during a commemoration ceremony held at Heroes of the Revolution Memorial, in central Bucharest, Romania. Romanians these days pay their respect to the 1989 activists who took to the streets 25 years ago, taking part at the revolution that toppled Eastern Europe’s most repressive communist regime. More than 1,000 people were killed across Romania during clashes between demonstrators and forces loyal to then dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.

An elderly couple sits on a bench in front of the fence of their home covered with election campaign poster in support of Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta in Floroaica village on Tuesday. Ponta won the first round of the presidential elections with the second round to take place on Sunday

A woman burns incense in front of the graves of her relatives at a cemetery in the village of Copaciu, southwest of Bucharest. Orthodox women went to church and cemeteries in the early morning on Maundy Thursday to light candles, burn incense and mourn their dead relatives as part of a southern Romanian traditional believers.

Young children attend a pre-school class in the Roma settlement of Ponorata in Romania. OvidiuRo, a Romanian non-governmental organisation co-founded by Leslie Hawke, the mother of US actor Ethan Hawke, is attempting to get Roma children to regularly attend pre-school through a coupon incentive system for food. Between 400 and 500 Roma live in squalour at Ponorata, few have access to electricity and 95 per cent are illiterate and unemployed. Many Roma from Ponorata have spent time in France to earn money, mostly through begging and scrap metal collection.

A woman holds toilet paper outside a public convenience near the Roman Catholic church during celebrations of the Assumption of Mary in Cacica, northern Romania on Thursday. The church, famous for it’s Black Madonna icon, was built by members of the Polish community and completed in 1904. In 2000, it was awarded the title of Basilica Minor by the late Pope John Paul II

A child enjoys a fountain in Bucharest, Romania, shortly before a thunderstorm, at the end of a torrid day on Tuesday. Southern Romania is affected by a massive heatwave with temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius in some areas.

An organizer walks on a large European Union flag displayed in front of Romania’s parliament building to mark EU Day in Bucharest. The flag measures 140m by 100m and weighs 800kg, according to organisers.

A woman burns incense in front of the graves of her relatives at a cemetery in the village of Copaciu, 42km southwest of Bucharest. Orthodox women went to church and cemeteries in the early morning on Maundy Thursday to light candles, burn incense and mourn their dead as part of a southern Romanian tradition. Holy Thursday is the day Christians commemorate the Last Supper of Jesus Christ. Romania’s Orthodox majority celebrates Easter on May 5.